1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a mold monitoring system.
2. Discussion of Related Art
Injection molds were in the past permitted to run in the press for very long part runs; and the mold was seldom removed from the press for storage. In these past systems, the molds were continuously associated with the press so that cycle counters on the press itself could be relied upon to provide the number of cycles of the mold and this was used to provide information relative to preventative maintenance, such as cleaning of the mold or lubricating critical surfaces.
Contemporary manufacturers utilize “just-in-time” practices wherein the purchaser does not maintain an inventory of large quantities of plastic parts, but manufactures the parts in smaller batches to be delivered on an “as-needed” basis. Such just-in-time practices may require molds to be swapped in and out of the press to produce different parts on an as-needed basis. As a result, press cycle counters which count the number of cycles of the press, can no longer be relied upon for maintenance schedules because a series of different molds is used in the press for relatively short periods of time.
Currently, records may be kept as to when and how long a particular mold has been run using mechanical counters that are affixed to the respective molds. Such mechanical counters include the COUNTERVIEW® cycle counter manufactured by Progressive Components International Corporation of Wauconda, Ill. Starkey, U.S. Pat. No. 5,571,539 is incorporated herein by reference and teaches one such mechanical counter. Such mechanical counters reveal a running tally of the number of cycles that a particular mold has run but little else about the manufacturing process.
Mechanical counters such as the COUNTERVIEW® cycle counter may positively monitor mold activity and validate process monitoring data. In addition, a serial number may be physically affixed to a surface of the COUNTERVIEW® cycle counter for association between the cycle counter and the particular mold. As a result of the association between the cycle counter and the mold, a manufacturer may then monitor mold data and thereby improve mold maintenance.
Such mechanical counters may be susceptible to physical tampering and also may result in inaccurate record keeping because of the reliance on human operators to verify and transcribe mold cycle counts and/or serial numbers. Improper or infrequent record keeping associated with a particular mold may have negative effects on the maintenance of the mold and/or maintaining a desired inventory of resulting parts. Obviously, without the proper maintenance of an injection mold, damage may occur and down time may also be the result. Likewise, failure to maintain a desired inventory of parts may have serious consequences on resulting production.
Thus, there remains a need for an improved cycle counter and manufacturing monitor and an improved method for tracking and/or reporting manufacturing parameters and practices.